


Finding Paladins

by Trickster_Angel



Series: Saga of the Lion-Hearted [1]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Awkwardness, Don't do what they do kids, Keith as Chat Noir, M/M, Minor Adam/Shiro - Freeform, Minor Harassment, Minor Injuries, Miraculous Ladybug AU, Shiro as Ladybug, Some Humor, Stupidity
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-07
Updated: 2019-02-07
Packaged: 2019-10-24 03:00:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,052
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17696384
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Trickster_Angel/pseuds/Trickster_Angel
Summary: Coran and Allura think they have the right people to become Ladybug and Chat Noir. But things are neverthateasy.





	Finding Paladins

**Author's Note:**

  * For [wynnebat](https://archiveofourown.org/users/wynnebat/gifts).



> Happy Birthday Wynne!!
> 
> Takes place in the same universe as In Formation. This story comes first.

“That's them, Coran.”

“You think they're the right ones for it?”

“I do.”

“Then we'll put them to the test.”

“Splendid.”

* * *

“You know how everyone says, ‘Middle school is easy. High school will be so much harder’?” Pidge asked.

“Yeah,” Hunk answered. But they weren't paying much attention to the conversation. They stared at the happy couple in front of them. Shiro and Adam were holding hands and talking, oblivious to the four walking a few paces behind them. 

“It really isn't,” Pidge said but even she wasn't listening to herself.

“They've been together a week,” Lance said.

“But Shiro's liked Adam for a while,” Keith said. 

“And how do you feel about that?” Hunk asked. 

“What are you, my therapist?” Keith replied, “He’s happy. That’s what matters. And we still share a room so it’s not like I don’t see him.”

“Yeah,” Pidge said.

“What?”

“Nothing,” all three of them said. But Keith didn’t really care if they believed him. Shiro was with the guy he’d been crushing on for months. That was what mattered.

In front of them, an older man was crossing the street. He stumbled on the curb and fell to the ground, his cane flying a few feet away. Shiro let go of Adam’s hand and ran over to him and helped him back to his feet. He retrieved the cane and handed it back to him. The old man seemed to thank him; Keith couldn’t hear their conversation over the flow of traffic. But then the old man took off with the cane. He actually sprinted with the cane. 

All six of them watched him go until he ran down a side street. The four of them caught up to Adam, still looking at the way the old man had gone. Shiro joined them too.

“That was weird,” Lance said.

“Yes, it was,” Adam agreed. 

“I guess he didn’t need the help,” Pidge said.

“Hey, you don’t know his story,” Hunk replied.

“It was still a good thing to do,” Adam said with a loving look at Shiro. 

“Thanks,” he said with a smile. 

Despite that unusual interaction, they continued on their walk home, Shiro and Adam a few paces in front of the rest of the group.

They tried to maintain a normal conversation but they were all distracted by the newest member of their group. Adam was a senior, like Shiro and he was nice enough. It wasn’t like he’d invited Lotor and his gang to hang out with them. Still, after all five of them being friends for so long, having a new member of the group was different, and something they’d all have to adjust to. Although the way it was going, it was more like they’d lost a member of their group. 

They continued on their way until Pidge, Hunk, and Lance split up from the rest of them. Adam lived close to where where Shiro and Keith lived. 

But when the rest of the group left, Keith felt like a third wheel. One walking five paces back from the happy couple. 

“What's up girlie?” Keith heard. He turned to look. A few men were chatting with a girl who looked around his age. She was trying to ignore them.

“You've got great legs,” one of them said.

The girl continued to ignore them. She was waiting for the light to cross the street.

“Don't ignore us, bitch.” One of the men grabbed her.

“Leave her alone,” Keith yelled. He walked over to them. There were only three of them. Keith could take them.

He didn't have the light and had to run through traffic to get to them. But the girl looked relieved to see him.

“What's you say?” One of the said.

“He said to leave me alone,” the girl said. 

The light changed. She grabbed Keith's arm and started walking back in his direction. Shiro and Adam were waiting for him.

When they reached the other street, Keith looked back. The men had moved on.

“Thank you,” the girl said, “That was very brave of you.”

“It's no big deal,” Keith replied.

“Are you both alright?” Shiro asked.

“I'm fine, thanks to your friend.”

“I'm okay, Shiro.”

“Well I should be heading on my way,” the girl said, “Thank you again.” She started walking in the other direction. 

The three boys watched her walk for a bit.

“What an eventful day,” Adam commented.

“Yeah, it really was,” Shiro agreed.

* * *

“How'd it go, Allura?”

“Perfect. It was unplanned but Keith proved himself. What about Shiro?”

“I think he's the one. It's time to move onto the next phase.”

* * *

The next day, Keith and Shiro returned home late. They'd been out with the rest of their friends and Adam but they had a curfew to adhere to. 

No one noticed when they came in. Their guardians were somewhere they couldn't see and they could hear the girls chatting in their room. 

It wasn't like they could call this a family; it was a foster home for teenagers. There was the two of them and three girls living there. Their guardians weren't very attentive but could sign permission slips and gave them a place to live so that was all that mattered. 

Keith had no intention of being social. Shiro would usually stop in to say hello to everyone but Keith just went to their room. 

He opened the door and noticed two identical boxes resting on their beds. It wasn’t like he got presents here. More likely that one of the girls was trying to prank them or something. He rolled his eyes and dropped his backpack on the floor. He took the box and opened it, expecting something to jump out. 

But that didn’t happen. Instead, he saw a black ring. A bright light grew from the ring and turned into a little black cat-like creature. 

“Hi there. I’m Plagg,” it said.

Keith dropped the box.

It floated closer to him. Keith had no idea what was happening. 

“You okay, kid?”

“What are you?” Keith asked.

The door opened and Shiro walked in. Both the cat and Keith looked at him. Shiro looked between Keith and the cat, wide eyed.

“What’s going on?” he asked.

“Good question,” Keith replied, “What are you?”

“I’m the black cat kwami,” he said as if that made sense.

“What’s this?” Shiro asked and picked up the box on his bed.

“That’s what it came from,” Keith said.

Shiro opened it up. Another bright light came out and turned into a creature that was similar to the cat but was a ladybug. “Hi. I’m Tikki. Who are you?”

“Uh, Shiro,” he replied, just as startled as Keith was. 

“Tikki!” The cat said and floated over to the ladybug. They hugged each other. 

Shiro and Keith just looked at each other. 

“Where did these come from?” Shiro asked.

“I don't know. They were on our beds when I walked in.”

“Excuse me.” Both boys looked at the ladybug. “I'm Tikki and this is Plagg. We're your kwamis.”

“And what's a Kwami?” Keith asked.

“We can transform you into superheroes,” Plagg replied.

“Superheroes? Why would we be superheroes?” Shiro asked.

“I don't know why you were chosen,” Tikki said, “But if you have the miraculous, then there's a reason for it.”

“Miraculous?”

“The ring for Chat Noir and the earrings for Ladybug,” Plagg explained, “You wear them and can become superheroes.”

“Why are you recruiting us to be superheroes?” Keith asked.

“One of the miraculous has been stolen and you two need to get it back,” Tikki explained.

“Okay.” Shiro and Keith looked at each other. This wasn’t making any sense.

But Keith picked up the box again and looked inside. The black ring had turned silver. He picked it up and slipped it on his finger.

“Uh, Tikki, we have a problem,” Shiro said, looking into his own box.

“What is it?”

“I don't have my ears pierced.”

* * *

“This isn't a good idea,” Keith said, holding a sewing needle over a lighter. Shiro insisted on disinfecting it before piercing his ears with it.

“We can't afford to get it done and I need my ears pierced to wear the miraculous,” Shiro replied. He was sitting on the toilet in their bathroom. In case anything went wrong, they had a sink right there, as well as tissues. And this was not going to go well; Keith had no doubts.

“Can't you use magic or something to pierce his ears?” Keith asked the two kwamis who were hovering near him.

“It doesn't work like that,” Plagg said, “I could put a hole in his ear but it might spread to his head.”

“Just do it, Keith,” Shiro said.

“Alright.”

He approached Shiro. He held his earlobe with his fingers and the needle with the other. The more he stood there, the more he hated this idea.

“Don’t scream.”

“I-” Shiro cried out in pain as Keith ran the needle through his ear. He jerked away and Keith lost the needle.

“Shiro, where’s the needle?” Keith asked. He looked over Shiro’s clothes but didn’t see it. 

Shiro pulled out the needle that was still in his ear and tossed it on the ground. Then he clutched at it to stop the bleeding. 

“Shiro, let go. I need to put the earring in,” Keith said. He had to work Shiro’s fingers away from the hole to stick the miraculous in his ear. He balled up a bunch of tissues and gave it to Shiro. “Use this.”

“That hurt more than I thought it would,” he said. 

Keith turned to the kwamis. “That's one earring. Is that enough?”

“Mmm,” Tikki said, “The transformation won't hold with one. You need both.”

“Just get it over with,” Shiro said. He clutched the wad of tissues to his bleeding ear.

“I need to disinfect the needle again,” Keith said. It took a minute of looking before he found it. It was still bloody.

Keith ran it under the faucet and then held it in the flame of the lighter he'd borrowed. “How's your ear?”

“Still bleeding,” Shiro replied.

Keith came back over with the needle. Shiro turned his head so Keith had a better view of his unpierced ear. The other earring was lying on the counter. 

“You know, you'll look pretty cool with your ears pierced,” Keith said.

“You think-” Keith jabbed the needle straight through his earlobe. Shiro made a sound like a strangled scream but bit down on his lip. 

Keith just shoved the earring in and closed it. Then he got some tissues and pressed them to Shiro's ear. It was bleeding as much as the other one.

“You're done. That's it. Adam’s gonna love it,” he said as he applied pressure to the ear. 

“You think so?” Shiro asked. He didn't sound all that interested in the question though. More like he was trying not to think about his aching ears.

“Yeah. Who wouldn't? Earrings are cool. And you're the last person who'd get them so he'll be surprised.”

“Thanks, Keith,” Shiro said. He peeled the tissues away and threw them out. His one ear had stopped bleeding. 

“Yeah, no problem.”

* * *

The ring bounced around when Keith walked. He was wearing it on a string around his neck, at Shiro's suggestion. He said it would be weird if they both showed up wearing new jewelry and since Shiro couldn't hide his, Keith did.

“Now that you have the miraculous, you can become Ladybug,” Tikki said. She was hiding in the pocket on Shiro's jacket. 

“How?”

“I'll teach you.”

“Shiro!” Tikki ducked back into his pocket.

Keith looked ahead and saw Adam waiting for them. Really just Shiro but they were a package deal, at least on the way to school. Keith needed to start leaving earlier. Or maybe later.

“Adam,” Shiro said, his face lighting up. 

Keith hung back and watched them kiss in greeting. 

Adam looked at Shiro in confusion. “You pierced your ears?”

“Yeah,” Shiro said.

“I never expected you would. They look good.”

It was pretty endearing how bashful Shiro looked at the compliment. “Thank you.”

The two started walking ahead and Keith trailed behind them.

“That's sickening,” Plagg said, poking his head out of Keith's pocket.

“You're telling me,” Keith replied and hurried along.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading. I hope you liked it. Please leave a comment or kudos if you did. I'll come up with the series soon, I promise.


End file.
